it's all about the little picture...

haute couture is all about exclusivity. sublime beauty and extravagance of the sort that most of us will never come close to. i have to admit though, if my entire understanding of couture was founded solely on the looks from the chanel spring 2010 collection i think i'd happily sit this one out and stay with the common folk...

according to vogue, this is the first time lagerfeld has done a whole collection without any black or navy. even though it has a slightly space age vibe with lots of silver and metallics don't describe the looks at 'futuristic', because apparently after the show he said 'I hate that. I don't believe in avant-garde clothes for a future that will never happen. Fashion is always now.'

okay... so let's just see how 'now' this collection really is.

alright, so lagerfeld is a fashion god, the king of all kings and the epitome of chic. but knee length shorts suits?! really?! lesson learnt i am hoping - even karl can't make knee length shorts look hot. change the colour to camel and they would blend right in to the uniform of a summer camp counselor... pleats and all. sorry, but screaming kids along with arts and crafts doesn't ring the exclusivity bell for me nor does it reign supreme in the world of high fashion.

now i am sure that pastel cocoon is made out of the most desirable and lush fabric... it probably took a thousand hours to hand craft. i get that, it looks utterly beautiful... until you notice the shape. it looks like an egg that she is hatching out of. the more i look at it the more confused i am - is it stiff? how is it keeping that monstrous shape? on the other hand, that silky dress underneath does look promising.

alright already... something i can handle. boring as it might be compared to some of the other space aged looks- this i like. the shape and cut are perfect, the fabric looks divine, and i am loving the detailing around the neck. yes please uncle karl, something i can support.

i know it isn't all about being super sexy and strutting your stuff in a provocative way... but are the men of the fashion industry trying to get back at us for something?! do they want us to look like bloated marshmallows? this dress is obviously gorgeous. the detail around the neck is beautiful. but honestly what is happening around her mid section? have i totally missed something? do people actually want to look like that?

as if the others weren't bad enough... this had to come strutting down. again, i am sure it is made out of bucket loads of the most expensive fabric imaginable... but it does not look good on her. there is something pretty whimsical about it though... i wouldn't mind something similar filtering down to my price level, only in a slightly diffused way.

ok, enough about the bubble belly trend that seems to be emerging. i am equally put off by this look. long skirts seem to be making a come back, and i think that's pretty awesome. however, this fingertip length jacket with long ruched skirt look is pretty awful. i really just don't get this... she looks unhappily statuesque.

if you are put off by the previous look though you can always opt for another version of the knee length short-suit in a pastel blue... hmm? does that take your fancy or inspire you? seriously change the colour to khaki green and i looks perfect for a safari - it even has the classic jumbo pockets that you can fill with all your adventurous items.

basically ladies (and gents?), i don't feel particularly moved by this collection. i'm not about to suit up in my (non-futuristic) space aged silver gloves, wear head to toe in one pastel colour, pull on my bubble belly dress, or slip into a knee length short suit anytime in the near future.

i guess i'm not meant to though... i'm not couture, and that's that. the more i look at the photos though the more mesmerized i am by the overall look. the whole romantic rococo outlandish thing... but i still don't actually like any of the outfits specifically, and more importantly if i had a spare 20grand sitting around i don't think i'd be choosing one of these outfits to spend it on.

i don't think the extravagance or the exclusivity is in the big picture though... i think it is in the details. from my point of view the big picture is sort of shapeless and unattractive, nothing that i would ever want to wear. the details though? now that is an entirely different story...

entirely captivating and utterly gorgeous. the sort of things dreams are made of... in other words: haute couture.

(all photos from style.com)